GOP Lines Up Behind Abbott as Texas Defies Biden and Adds More Razor Wire to Southern Border

‘I hope Texas law allows law enforcement and public safety officials to use all legal methods up to and including necessary force to stop people from crossing the border illegally,’ Governor Noem says.

AP/Eric Gay
Concertina wire lines the path as members of Congress tour an area near the Texas-Mexico border. AP/Eric Gay

Republicans are lining up behind Governor Abbott and Texas after the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Department of Homeland Security in a case against Texas over the state’s independent building of barriers along the southern border.

In a ruling Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government can remove barriers along the southern border that Texas had placed there.

The Department of Homeland Security argued the barriers prevented Border Patrol from accessing the land along the border, and that Texas cannot place barriers that prevent federal law enforcement from performing their duties.

In the case, the American Solicitor General said that the razor wire along the bank of the Rio Grande made it harder for federal law enforcement to apprehend migrants crossing over the land in question.

Though this ruling is only a small part of a larger legal dispute between the federal government and Texas, Mr. Abbott is vowing to keep placing barriers at the southern border.

“The federal government has broken the compact between the United States and the States,” Mr. Abbott said in a statement, adding that he has declared “an invasion” and that the “Texas National Guard, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other Texas personnel are acting on that authority.”

Since the declaration, Texas has begun adding more razor wire along the border and Republicans around the country are expressing their support for Mr. Abbott.

“If the Constitution really made states powerless to defend themselves against an invasion, it wouldn’t have been ratified in the first place and Texas would have never joined the union when it did,” Governor DeSantis said in a tweet. “FL will keep assisting Texas with personnel and assets.”

The governor of Oklahoma, Kevin Stitt, also expressed support, saying, “Oklahoma stands with Texas.” Governor Noem joined Mr. Stitt in expressing support for Mr. Abbott.

“I hope Texas law allows law enforcement and public safety officials to use all legal methods up to and including necessary force to stop people from crossing the border illegally,” Ms. Noem said in a statement. “It only takes one or two to send a message that illegal activity will not be tolerated.”

Governor Youngkin also said that “Virginia stands with Texas” adding that Mr. Abbott “is doing the job Joe Biden and his border czar refuse to do to secure our border.”

The speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, signaled his support as well, saying that  “I stand with Governor Abbott. The House will do everything in its power to back him up,” in a statement.


The New York Sun

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